Cornerstone at Cathedral

Alex Crosthwaite, who has accepted a scholarship offer to Cal, used to be a large goalkeeper in soccer. (Sean M. Haffey / Union-Tribune)

Alex Crosthwaite, who has accepted a scholarship offer to Cal, used to be a large goalkeeper in soccer. (Sean M. Haffey / Union-Tribune)

Alex Crosthwaite, who has accepted a scholarship offer to Cal, used to be a large goalkeeper in soccer. (Sean M. Haffey / Union-Tribune)

By Boyce Garrison

HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL

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Alex Crosthwaite isn't quite as big as the tricked-out, red Super Duty Ford truck he drives to and from school. Yet his opponents can't seem to tell the difference after the red-jerseyed Crosthwaite runs over them.

Crosthwaite is a 6-foot-5, 307-pound behemoth for Cathedral Catholic High, and his motto goes like this:

“I just want to kick someone's (behind). If I don't pancake the guy I'm blocking, it's not a complete block for me.”

Crosthwaite will be the second big offensive lineman to go on to a Pac-10 school in two years from Cathedral Catholic's Carmel Valley campus. Crosthwaite has committed to Cal after narrowing 15 Division I offers down to the Bears, San Diego State and Minnesota.

The Dons sent Everett Benyard to Oregon off last year's team, which won a State Football Championship Bowl and set all kinds of offensive records with Stanford-bound running back Tyler Gaffney. With those two gone, Crosthwaite will be a vocal team captain this season.

“I've got the nastiness,” he said. “I yell at everybody on the other team.”

Crosthwaite was born in the United States, but his family lived in Rosarito until moving to Chula Vista a few years ago. His teammates call him “Big Mex,” and his real first name is Alejandro. He grew up racing motorcycles and playing a rather large goalkeeper for his youth soccer teams.

Fútbol was the family's dominant sport. No longer.

“The whole family has started watching football,” Crosthwaite said.

The other schools that recruited Crosthwaite have not given up. He still gets calls from coaches.

“Academics is the big thing for me,” Crosthwaite said. “There's a great balance between athletics and academics at Cal. I wanted to stay close to home so my family and my parents could come to the games, but it was academics that made me choose Cal.”

He will major in business administration, hoping someday to take over the condo development business his dad started in Mexico.

Until then, he's all business on the football field.

“For a kid that is as big as he is, he has unbelievable feet,” Cathedral head coach Sean Doyle said of Crosthwaite's quickness. “But the greatest thing that every college liked about him was just his will and drive to finish guys (off). He doesn't just block guys. He's going to just put guys into the ground. He wants a (pancake) on every single play.”

That's especially important for the Dons this season. Cathedral opens with a first-time varsity starter at quarterback in senior Max Brewer, and there is little depth behind him. The Dons lost senior QB candidate Ian Sholl to a broken foot this summer. He isn't expected to return until after three or four games.

Cathedral is not taking it easy in its first few nonleague games. The Dons start with Steele Canyon tomorrow followed by Torrey Pines, Helix and Carlsbad.

“The whole offensive line has to make it easier on Brewer as he gets experience,” offensive line coach Dustin Nies said. “And the big thing about Alex is he has football smarts to help us do that. He's like a coach on the field. I'll tell them something and if I make a mistake he'll say, ‘No, coach. We should do it this way.’ ”

Not bad for a player who never watched football growing up, other than a couple of Rose Bowls.

“Every Chargers game now, we have a barbecue at my house,” Crosthwaite said. “We've abandoned soccer.”